We push and pull like magnets do

When you are young and just starting out, sometimes it can be a bit challenging (or overwhelming) to decide which career path to focus on. Choosing a career path can make a big impact on what type of job you might be able to find and qualify for right out of college. With that in mind, you need to make sure that this career choice is something you enjoy and feels right for your future. There is certainly a lot of planning that goes into a decision of this magnitude. Here is some helpful guidance that may assist in that decision-making process.

Self-Assessment:

The first step is to really spend some time considering what is most important to you. This involves asking yourself a number of questions. For example, what types of things do you enjoy? Are there any hobbies you find interesting? What kind of potential job choices would make you happy to attend every day? Are you interested in art, drawing, creativeness or animation? Are you more left brain or right brain oriented?

For the answers to these questions, you need to think about what you have done in the past. Maybe there were some classes that really captured your interest. Maybe you felt more comfortable in your art program than in the math and science classes. Hobbies can also make for an interesting and rewarding choice of career paths. Do you like to draw, sketch or doodle on your free time, or are you more of an active person that likes to run, jump and get dirty? If there are certain careers or job types that you think might be interesting, try to find some people actually working in those fields. Talk to them and see what insights they can give you.

Consider Your Values:
Another big consideration when choosing your career path is what type of value system do you have? This should be aligned with your choice in career path, in order to give you the best chance of finding a future position that you actually enjoy in an industry that excites you. Are you a passionate person? Think about the level of passion that you have for specific activities and employ that passion towards your career. When you are passionate about what you are doing, it will be illustrated in your work. The value that you place on specific career path choices should be a direct result of the amount of passion you have in that field or industry.

The type of organization or business is also a priority to reflect on when making a decision regarding your career path. There are some people who truly enjoy being part of a large business or government agency. However, there are others who couldn’t stand that type of work and would rather work in a small business or even start their own business as an entrepreneur. Some may even enjoy working alone using their creativeness to construct new ideas and images. There are many industries to choose from and each will entail a different type of preparation, which will lead you to various potential career paths.

Combining Everything:
Ultimately, your choice of career path comes down to examining every option, personal interests, and considerations. This examination entails putting it all together to make the best possible decision for your future. What do you really want to do? Once you answer this question then you can determine the best path to get there much more easily. Once you have carefully made these decisions and examinations, you can make a list of possible career paths that sound appealing, and then investigate each one further. For those of you who are interested in a creative field and imaginative industry, pursuing an animation program or something in the graphic arts industry might be an excellent choice. Finally, use the list that you created to narrow down potential career paths until you have only one selection remaining.